Besides meeting the needs of students, other factors combined to spur the program to move away from an exclusively academic program towards a program that offered employment training linked to literacy development. These factors were lowered entry requirements for the adult high school, changing demographics, and the development of government training programs designed to help students become less dependent on social assistance. The local high school program began to offer credit courses to help students prepare for entry. Many students, whose only previous option was to upgrade in a non–credit program, like the literacy program, opted to upgrade at the high school instead. At the same time, the literacy program began to see an increase in the number of students who had immigrated to Canada, became citizens, had obtained a proficiency in oral skills, but demonstrated a significant gap between their oral abilities and literacy skills. Finally, the provincial Ontario Works (OW) program, run by the city's social services department, initiated a variety of training programs to help social service recipients become employed. Students who once attended literacy programs because there were few educational options available, opted instead to attend OW sponsored training. Simultaneous to the program's demographic changes and the changes in the community related to education and training, were changes in literacy education funding and delivery. A greater emphasis was being placed on the development of literacy related to employment, and more rigorous accountability measures were being implemented. Instructors and program mangers quickly recognized an ever-widening gap between the funders' expectations of the program and the learning realities of the students.

For nearly two years before March 2000, when the employment preparation program was initiated, ideas were discussed and attempts to secure extra funding were made to help establish a literacy and employment program for students. The goal was to provide hands-on learning in three different work environments—the coffee shop, a greenhouse, and an office. At first, the main stumbling block was funding. Regular funding for the literacy program could not be used to purchase the non–literacy related materials and equipment that were needed to set up these work environments. The program searched for additional funding outside the traditional literacy budget and obtained a one–time grant of $25,000 from the city's social services department. This money had been earmarked for programs in the community that could help social assistance recipients enter the job market. The money was used to purchase some of the tools, supplies, and equipment for each of the three work environments¹ in the program. In addition, instructors received funding to write curriculum materials for the program. Once the coffee shop was operational, it began to sustain itself by using the money from sales to replenish baking and coffee supplies. Provincial literacy funding was obtained two years in a row to help support the development of the program through research, materials development, and the establishment of job placements for the students.

¹ The simulated office was disbanded after only three months. There was no employment potential for the students since most jobs required a high school diploma. The greenhouse ran for over a year but ended when the program moved to a new location.